Board Room 9/5

Achievements

Tom Ferdinandi, executive vice president and chief operations officer of Fresno-based Milano Restaurant International Corp., was selected as chairman of the California Restaurant Association board of directors.

The incoming board of directors for the 2010-11 year for the local chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction are Beth McDonell, president, the city of Fresno; Karen Kimura, CIT, vice president, Kasco Fab; Donnal Measell, secretary, Motivational Systems; Marilyn Camin, CIT, treasurer, Special Services; and directors Janelle Romeo, Kitchell and Sue Meredith, Alert-O-Lite.

Bill Myers recently earned his license as a professional business coach after training at the Professional Business Coach Alliance. Myers will be coaching business owners on personal and business goals to increase profits and make going to work fun again.

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Dr. Stephen A. Rodemeyer, an emeritus professor of chemistry and former director of the Smittcamp Family Honors College at California State University, Fresno, will be honored as a 2010 fellow by the American Chemical Society.

Anniversary

Rulison Collision Center Inc., 4025 W. Ashcroft Ave., Fresno, celebrates its first anniversary this month. The body shop was opened by Steve Rulison Jr., a member of the Rulison family, which has been operating body shops in Fresno for more than 60 years.

Announcements

Charles Trudrung Taylor, an employment attorney, René Lastreto II, a bankruptcy attorney, Mark L. Creede, a construction attorney, Robert L. Patch II, a plaintiff personal injury attorney, and Val W. Saldana, a construction attorney, and all shareholders of Lang, Richert & Patch, each received the honorary title of Northern California Super Lawyer for 2010 from the San Francisco publication, Law & Politics.

Brian Angus was appointed executive director of the Fresno County Economic Opportunities Commission. Angus has 38 years in community action and experience in leadership roles at several community action agencies.

Awards

Dylan and Anna Conner, owners of the Mr. Appliance of Central Valley franchise, were honored by Mr. Appliance Corp. as Rookie of the Year at the company's national conference. The award goes to the franchise owners who have been in business fewer than 18 months, demonstrate outstanding performance in sales, are focused on building the organization and are committed to full execution of the system.

ServiceMaster by Benevento was one of five ServiceMaster franchises in the U.S. to be the recipient of the Expert Award. The company has earned the award twice previously.

RS Morris Construction of Clovis was selected to receive the Administrator's Award for Excellence under the contractor category, the U.S. Small Business Administration Region IX announced. The award recognizes the company as one of the nation's outstanding small-business contractors.

New faces

Melanie Stayner joined the Hire Up Staffing Firm to head its new medical personnel division for local health-care companies looking for medical-related employees. Stayner has more than 13 years experience in the staffing industry and a background in the medical field.

Jean Kennedy joined Fresno West Coalition for Economic Development as BMOC/BMB program manager and will work on the BMOC/Black Men and Boys initiative implementation phase.

Promotions

Brian Repucci was promoted to manager in the Litigation and Forensic Consulting Services department of Hemming Morse Inc.'s Fresno office. Repucci has more than 12 years experience in accounting, consulting and litigation services.

Juan Lopez and Robert Meeker were promoted at CSET. Lopez will be the Sequoia Community Corps assistant director for construction programs, and Meeker is the senior program coordinator for the Weatherization Assistance Program.

Dianne Edwards was promoted to vice president of First California Federal Credit Union.

Jill Gormley, T.E. of TPG Consulting, was promoted to vice president of the company's transportation division. Gormley will manage transportation projects and focus on client relations.